


He'd Known From The Start

by Secretlyademigodinthetardis



Series: A Little Slice of Heaven [2]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Bakery AU, Castiel moves in above Dean, Dean owns a bakery, F/M, Falling In Love, Friends to Lovers, Happy Ending, Human AU, Humour, Love, Love Confessions, M/M, Sam is at college, slight porn, texting Sam
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-09
Updated: 2014-05-09
Packaged: 2018-01-24 03:00:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,839
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1589213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Secretlyademigodinthetardis/pseuds/Secretlyademigodinthetardis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sequel(ish) to A Little Slice of Heaven, which I've turned into a 'verse and will be adding to with timestamps and stuff. Basically a short ficlet consisting of Dean's POV of the events in A Little Slice of Heaven.</p><p>"Falling in love with Castiel Collins was the single easiest thing Dean had ever done.</p><p>And that was counting the one time he’d accidentally managed to read the entirety of the Discworld books."</p>
            </blockquote>





	He'd Known From The Start

**Author's Note:**

> I did it. I caved. If you're reading this, please read A Little Slice of Heaven first because it'll make so much more sense and yeah.

Dean would always remember the second he laid eyes on Castiel Collins.

Honestly, how could he not?

It was a relatively slow day at A Little Slice of Heaven. Dean had finished all his cooking for the day, and was simply standing behind the counter with Andy, letting his eyes rove over his small, successful business with unadulterated pride. His regulars – Mrs Mosely, Bobby Singer, and Rufus Turner – were all huddled in their usual booth, nursing coffees and one of Dean’s special recipe choc chip brownie muffins. Over in the corner, a woman sat facing in his direction opposite a dark haired man. Before Dean could look any further, his phone vibrated in his pocket, and he pulled it out.

“Hey, what happened to the no phones rule??” Andy gasped in mock horror. Dean scowled at him.

“Yeah, that rule applies to people who don’t possess the magic pie powers. Which I do. And you don’t. So go and do whatever the hell it is I pay you for!”

Andy rolled his eyes and went to slouch behind the counter, where Jo swatted at his ass with a tea towel. Dean snorted, and checked his phone.

_1 new message from: Lil Bitch_

**-Dean, is it cool if I come home to visit in six months? Can’t manage it before then – assignments are kicking my ass.**

Dean’s good mood fell slightly.

_From: Dean_

-Sure, but you better pass all your exams if you’re passing up coming home for a visit. There’s still a fucking lettuce in the fridge that you left behind

A pause while he waited.

_From: Lil Bitch_

**-I LEFT THAT THERE TWO MONTHS AGO DEAN. WHY HAVEN’T YOU EATEN IT?!**

_From: Dean_

-Rabbit food, Sammy! I survive on REAL food!

_From: Lil Bitch_

**-THROW IT OUT DO NOT EAT IT YOU MIGHT DIE**

_From: Dean_

-IT’S A LETTUCE OF COURSE I WOULD DIE

Dean shoved his phone back in his pocket, resolving to clear out his fridge later. He was 95% certain there was a small civilisation that had evolved enough to start interstellar travel living in the mould in the salad drawer.

Eugh. Salad.

He glanced back up at his customers, and saw the woman – dark hair, rounded face, pointed chin – getting up and leaving the booth, smiling down at the man while handing him a couple of pieces of paper.

And then the man looked back up, and Dean saw his face.

All the clichés in the world didn’t do the moment justice. Dean’s vision tunnelled, and all that mattered – all that fucking _existed_ – was this stranger, and his thick black hair, and his strong jawline speckled with stubble that Dean wanted to rub his face on, and his eyes that were so blue Dean could’ve gone on for weeks spouting Shakespeare about and _oh Jesus fucking Christ_.

His knees wobbled and he put a hand on the counter to steady himself, hoping nobody had seen.

No such luck.

“See something you like?”

Dean turned and glared at Jo, who was grinning like she’d just won the lottery.

“You should talk to him.”

“Shut the fuck up or you’re fired.”

“You can’t fire me, my mom will kill you. And you know you should talk to him and have his adopted babies – it’s written all over your face.”

He scowled at nothing in particular.

“There’s the teddy bear we all know and love!”

“Fuck off,” he mumbled half-heartedly.

She grinned and went back to cleaning the coffee machine. Dean struggled with himself briefly, but he knew his mind had been made up.

_Nut up or regret it, Winchester._

_Nut up or regret it._

_Nut up or regret it._

_Nut up or.._ _.._

He made his way over to the table and swallowed his anxiety.

“Hey, are you gonna order somethin’?”

And naturally the first thing to come out of Dean Winchester’s mouth, when faced with an attractive stranger, would be the one thing guaranteed to make him sound like the biggest asshole ever.

And then the man looked at him, and Dean wished the world would stop so that he could take this moment and treasure it forever. Because the guy was looking at him like…..like….

Like Dean was something special, even if he didn't know him.

Some small part of Dean knew, even then, that his life was about to change forever.

* * *

Falling in love with Castiel Collins was the single easiest thing Dean had ever done.

And that was counting the one time he’d accidentally managed to read the entirety of the Discworld books.

It wasn't just that Castiel was, hands down, the most gorgeous guy Dean had ever had the misfortune to live under (and God knew Dean wanted that particular innuendo to come to life). It wasn’t just that Castiel was incredibly helpful, sweet, funny, thoughtful and kind. It wasn’t just that he lent Dean his books, which Dean was pretty sure took priority over furniture (the guy had lined his goddamn living room with knee deep piles of them for God’s sake), and answered his door at 3am when Dean had finished Brisingr and needed the next book _right now Cas because holy fucking shit these books are amazing_.

It was all of these things, and so much more.

It was Castiel’s sleepy but incredibly pleased expression when he opened up his door to see Dean, even if it was 3am. It was his shy smiles whenever Dean complimented his cooking, or handed him the sandwich Castiel needed because Dean knew that if he didn’t make Castiel anything to eat, Castiel would forget, because that was the kind of guy Castiel was. It was his selfless nature, the way he spoke to each customer as if they were the most important person to ever enter his life, and the way he listened to what they said with utter sincerity and gave honest and thoughtful responses.

It was the way he took one look at Dean’s face and hugged him, the night of November 2nd, when Dean showed up outside his door in tears because it was the anniversary of the night his parents died and Sam wasn’t there to put up with Dean’s grief, because Sam was away studying and had his life together while Dean’s entire life had until now revolved around raising the kid and even starting up a business to provide the funds to send Sam to the college of his dreams.

It was how Castiel had listened to Dean’s story, tears and all, and led him to Castiel’s small bedroom, laid him down, and curled himself around Dean to help him sleep.

It was how Dean’s heart had stuttered when he woke up with Castiel asleep beside him, and wished it could be that was forever.

Dean knew he was hopelessly in love with Castiel Collins and everything about him, and he knew that he wouldn’t ever stop loving the dorky nerd who lived in the apartment above.

* * *

_From: Dean_

-SAM. NEED HELP ASAP. STAT. EMERGENCY.

_From: Lil Bitch_

- **Dean, it’s 2am. This better be good.**

_From: Dean_

-He was wearing GLASSES, Sammy. GLASSES.

_From: Lil Bitch_

-…….

_From: Lil Bitch_

- **I am going to murder you in your sleep.**

_From: Dean_

-GLASSES SAMMY.

_From: Dean_

-HOW CAN I BE EXPECTED TO REMAIN A FUNCTIONAL HUMAN BEING WHEN HE ANSWERS HIS DOOR IN GLASSES AND A BATHROBE.

_From: Dean_

-HOW.

_From: Lil Bitch_

- **Dean, I’m going to sleep. Jess says if you haven’t kissed him by the time I come home for your birthday, I have to do it.**

_From: Dean_

-If you lay so much as one overly large moose paw on him you are a dead man Samuel Winchester. He is a literal angel.

_From: Lil Bitch_

- **……..text me when you haven’t had a drink**

_From: Lil Bitch_

- **or smoked what sounds like a metric fuckton of weed.**

_From: Lil Bitch_

- **That was Jess. But her point stands.**

* * *

When Sam came home, Dean was horrified to see that his baby brother had grown even _taller_.

“Is Jess giving you steroids?” he demanded as the pair of them made their way up the rickety staircase. “I mean, she seems like a nice girl, but all the insane ones do.”

Sam rolled his eyes.

“No, Dean, this is a by-product of what regular people call ‘healthy living’.”

“It sounds evil and I want no part of it,” Dean declared as they reached the middle landing, where the faint clunking noise he had been hearing turned out to be Castiel hauling his bike downstairs. Dean’s breath caught in his throat, and Sam gave the wickedest smirk Dean had ever seen. Castiel gave the pair of them a puzzled, awkward smile.

“Hello Dean.”

Somehow, Dean’s half-fried brain put together a coherent sentence.

“Cas! Hey! This is Cas, Sammy. Cas, this is my dorky brother, Sammy Winchester.”

The rest of the conversation passed in a blur, and Dean found himself staring at Castiel once more, drinking in his appearance as if it was the first time he had ever seen him. He was brought back down to earth (hitting every branch of the Confused Idiot Tree on the way) by Sam nudging him. He rubbed the back of his neck, wishing the earth would swallow him up, before smiling at Castiel shyly.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Cas.”

Castiel’s answering smile gave Dean wings.

After a good minute, the World’s Most Annoying Moose decided to make his presence felt, and as Castiel hurried away down the stairs, still manhandling his bike (“That thing will kill you one day, Cas!” “Dean, it is an eco-friendly, healthy and efficient way of getting wherever I need to go.” “At least let me plan the funeral, because God knows you’d suck at it.”), Sam whispered in Dean’s ear.

“You two are like the shittiest romantic comedy ever. Fucking kiss him already before I push you down the stairs.”

Dean tripped over his own foot.

“Shut up, bitch!”

“Jerk.”

* * *

When Dean kissed Castiel for the first time, he thought he’d died.

No, really. His lungs and heart stopped working, and his entire existence boiled down to the feeling of Castiel’s lips on his.

Yep. Dean was pretty sure he was dead.

Castiel apparently had other ideas, though, and proved Dean wrong in the best way possible. When he told Dean he was in love with him, too, Dean could have cried from the emotions that ripped through him like a summer tornado, only before that could happen Castiel had slid a finger inside of him and any semblance of sanity had long since left the building because _Castiel was making love to him Castiel was in love with him Castiel loved him back._

When the both of them came, howling and moaning, Dean knew he was never going to let go of Castiel.

He supposed, in the back of his mind as he fell asleep that night, holding onto the slim dark haired man, he’d know it as soon as he laid eyes on him.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos are something I covet unashamedly. Ahem.  
> Also the Discworld novels are a series of books by Terry Practchett and they're honestly the best things ever. Brisingr is a book by Christopher Paolini, and is the third book in the Inheritance cycle. I would highly recommend these to literally everyone.


End file.
